I read the post and realized how many of the points are rendered moot in the Indian education system :C, these two make me really really sad.
Meet as many smart people as possible: If you are not in the top notch schools you don't get to see a lot of them. And even when you make it into the best ones chances are that half of the class is not that intellectually simulating. I mean they are great at there course work, sure, but don't really want to think of anything else.
Study Subjects that are new and challenging: Indian colleges do not follow the choice based credit system. It's the college's way or the high way. Although there are 2-3 subjects per semester you absolutely love, the rest offset the fun by loading you with things you are not interested in.
Another point, most of the engineering students in India do not want to be an engineer. They want to get into a good MBA program.
I would look at this article as being about opportunity cost though, not necessarily that each of the bullet points must be extant in a program in order for you to enroll or stay in college. Ask yourself: would I be _more_ likely to meet smart people on my own without college? Would I be _more_ likely to study and engage subjects that are new and challenging? Not that I'm not implying an ultimatum between college and sitting around at home; it's all dependent upon your own motivation and circumstances (e.g. move to a city, if you think that would increase the likelihood of those things). However, anyone who's successful and hasn't gone to college _or_ made sure to attend to those aspects has likely just gotten lucky.
Cannot agree more about your motivation point. Yes college played a role in me meeting some of the most fascinating people, but the rate is not as much as I would want. And as for the challenging subjects part, well I would just say college really made no difference there, well apart from telling me what I should learn.
Meet as many smart people as possible: If you are not in the top notch schools you don't get to see a lot of them. And even when you make it into the best ones chances are that half of the class is not that intellectually simulating. I mean they are great at there course work, sure, but don't really want to think of anything else.
Study Subjects that are new and challenging: Indian colleges do not follow the choice based credit system. It's the college's way or the high way. Although there are 2-3 subjects per semester you absolutely love, the rest offset the fun by loading you with things you are not interested in.
Another point, most of the engineering students in India do not want to be an engineer. They want to get into a good MBA program.